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DECREE OF THE GOVERNMENT

Detailing and guiding the implementation of a number of articles of the labor code

on labor-related complaints and denunciations

THE GOVERNMENT

Pursuant to the December 25, 2001 Law on Organization of the Government;

Pursuant to the June 23, 1994 Labor Code; the April 2, 2002 Law Amending and Supplementing a Number of Articles of the Labor Code;

At the proposal of the Minister of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs,

DECREES:

Chapter I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1.- Scope of regulation

This Decree prescribes labor-related complaints and denunciations and the settlement thereof.

Article 2.- Objects of application

This Decree applies to laborers, labor collectives and labor users, including:

1. Laborers or labor collectives working in the following organizations:

a/ Enterprises established and operating under the Law on State Enterprises;

b/ Enterprises established and operating under the Law on Enterprises;

c/ Enterprises established and operating under the Law on Foreign Investment in Vietnam;

d/ Enterprises of political organizations or socio-political organizations;

e/ Cooperatives established and operating under the Law on Cooperatives;

f/ State agencies, non-business units, political organizations, socio-political organizations, socio-political-professional organizations, socio-professional organizations, and other social organizations;

g/ Economic units and organizations of the People's Army or the People's Police;

h/ Agencies and organizations which sign contracts with laborers to send them overseas for training, study or improvement of professional skills;

i/ Farms, individuals and households that employ laborers;

j/ Semi-public, people-founded or private establishments in the domains of culture, healthcare, education, training, science, physical training and sports, and other domains;

k/ Foreign agencies, organizations and individuals or international organizations based in the Vietnamese territory and employing laborers under Vietnamese labor legislation, except otherwise provided for by international agreements which the Socialist Republic of Vietnam has signed or acceded to.

2. Labor users include:

a/ General directors, directors of State enterprises, private enterprises, joint-stock companies, limited liability companies, partnerships;

b/ Managers of cooperatives, individuals and household masters that employ laborers;

c/ Heads of State agencies, non-business units, political organizations, socio-political organizations, socio-political-professional organizations, socio-professional organizations or other social organizations, that employ laborers under labor contracts;

d/ Heads of economic units or organizations of the People's Army or the People's Police, that employ laborers under labor contracts;

e/ General directors, directors of foreign-invested enterprises operating under the Law on Foreign Investment in Vietnam, foreign agencies, organizations and individuals or international organizations based in the Vietnamese territory, that employ laborers under labor contracts;

f/ Directors of Vietnamese enterprises, heads of Vietnamese agencies or organizations and Vietnamese individuals located or residing in the Vietnamese territory and employing foreign laborers.

3. In cases where international agreements which the Socialist Republic of Vietnam has signed or acceded to contain provisions different from those of this Decree, the provisions of such international agreements shall apply.

Article 3.- Objects of non-application

1. This Decree shall not apply to the following objects:

a/ Public employees and servants under the Ordinance on Public Employees and Servants;

b/ Members of cooperatives under the Law on Cooperatives;

c/ Officers, non-commissioned officers, soldiers, professional armymen and employees in the People's Army or the People's Police;

d/ Laborers going to work overseas in the forms prescribed in Clause 30, Article 1 of the Law Amending and Supplementing a Number of Articles of the Labor Code.

2. This Decree shall not apply to the following cases:

a/ Complaints and denunciations about decisions and/or acts not involved in labor relations;

b/ Cases where lawsuits are initiated according to the provisions of the Civil Procedure Code on the procedures for settling labor disputes.

Article 4.- Interpretation of terms

In this Decree, the following terms shall be construed as follows:

1. Complaint means that laborers or labor collectives request competent individuals or agencies to revise decisions or acts of labor users when they have grounds to believe that such decisions or acts violate labor legislation, infringe upon their legitimate rights and interests.

2. Denunciation means that laborers or labor collectives report to competent individuals or agencies on labor users' decisions or acts violating labor legislation, thus causing harms or threatening to cause harms to interests of the State, legitimate rights and interests of laborers and/or labor collectives.

3. Complainant means a laborer or a labor collective that exercises the right to complaints.

4. Complained person means a labor user who has issued a complained decision or taken a complained act.

5. Denouncer means a laborer or a labor collective that exercises the right to denunciations.

6. Denounced person means a labor user who has issued a denounced decision or taken a denounced act.

7. Complaint settler means an agency or an individual competent to settle complaints.

8. Denunciation settler means an agency or an individual competent to settle denunciations.

9. Settlement of complaints means the verification of, conclusion on, issuance of decisions to settle, complaints by competent agencies or individuals.

10. Settlement of denunciations means the verification of, and conclusion on, contents of denunciations and the issuance of handling decisions by agencies or individuals competent to settle denunciations.

11. Legally effective complaint-settling decisions include first-time complaint-settling decision or subsequent-time complaint-settling decision, provided that within the law-prescribed time limit the complainant makes no further complaint; or final complaint-settling decision.

12. Provincial/municipal Service's chief inspector means the chief inspector of a provincial/municipal Service of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs.

13. The Ministry's chief inspector means the chief inspector of the Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs.

14. Labor decision means a labor user's written decision which is binding on a laborer or a labor collective in labor relations and social relations directly related to labor relations.

15. Labor act means an act taken by a labor user in labor relations and social relations directly related to labor relations.

16. Days counted for determination of the statute of limitations for complaining and the time limit for settling complaints or denunciations are working days of State administrative agencies or individuals competent to receive written complaints or denunciations.

Article 5.- Principles for settling complaints and denunciations

1. Objectiveness, honesty and compliance with law.

2. Promptness, swiftness and publicity.

3. Strict compliance with competence, order, procedures and time limit prescribed by law.

Chapter II

SETTLEMENT OF COMPLAINTS

Section 1. RIGHTS AND OBLIGATIONS OF COMPLAINANTS AND COMPLAINED PERSONS

Article 6.- Rights and obligations of complainants

1. Complainants have the following rights:

a/ To lodge complaints by themselves or through their lawful representatives;

b/ To further lodge complaints to provincial/municipal Services' chief inspectors if they disagree with first-time complaint-settling decisions of labor users and labor inspectors when conducting inspection; complainants and complained persons who disagree with settling decisions of provincial/municipal Services' chief inspectors may further lodge complaints to the Ministry's chief inspector;

c/ To have their legitimate rights and interests, which have been infringed upon, restored, or to get damages under complaint-settling decisions;

d/ To withdraw their complaints at any stage of the settlement process.

2. Complainants have the following obligations:

a/ To send their written complaints to the right persons with settling competence;

b/ To clearly state in their complaints the complaining reasons and contents, and honestly present the case; to supply information, documents and necessary evidences (if any); to take responsibility before law for the complaining contents as well as the supplied information, documents and evidences;

c/ To strictly abide by complaint-settling decisions which have taken legal effect.

Article 7.- Rights and obligations of complained persons

1. Complained persons have the following rights:

a/ To show evidences proving the lawfulness of the complained labor decisions or labor acts;

b/ To receive higher-level complaint settlers' decisions on settling the complaints which they have settled but been further lodged by complainants.

2. Complained labor users have the following obligations:

a/ To receive and settle labor-related first-time complaints;

b/ To examine and revise their complained labor decisions or labor acts; to promptly remedy and restore legitimate rights and interests of laborers if recognizing that such decisions or acts are unlawful;

c/ To explain the complained labor decisions or labor acts, and supply relevant information, documents and evidences when so requested by competent agencies;

d/ To strictly abide by labor-related complaint-settling decisions which have taken legal effect;

e/ To pay damages and remedy consequences caused by their decisions or acts, which violate labor legislation, according to law provisions.

Section 2. COMPETENCE TO SETTLE COMPLAINTS

Article 8.- Competence to settle complaints

1. Labor users shall have to settle first-time complaints of laborers or labor collectives.

2. When conducting inspection, labor inspectors shall have the right to receive and settle labor-related complaints according to law provisions.

3. Provincial/municipal Services' chief inspectors are competent to settle labor-related complaints, which have been previously settled by labor users or labor inspectors but further lodged.

4. The Ministry's chief inspector is competent to settle labor-related complaints, which have been previously settled by provincial/municipal Services' chief inspectors but further lodged. Settling decisions of the Ministry's chief inspector are final ones.

Article 9.- Statute of limitations for complaining

The statute of limitations for lodging a complaint shall be 90 days after the complainant receives a labor decision or is aware of a labor act.

In cases where complainants, due to illness, natural calamities, enemy sabotages, travel to distant places on working missions or for study or due to other objectives obstacles, cannot exercise the right to complain within the statute of limitations for complaining, the duration when such obstacles exist shall not be counted into the statute of limitations for complaining.

Article 10.- Right to select complaint settlers

Laborers or labor collectives that do not initiate labor lawsuits at competent courts shall have the right to lodge complaints according to the provisions of this Decree.

Section 3. PROCEDURES FOR SETTLING COMPLAINTS

Article 11.- Cases where complaints are not accepted for settlement

1. Contents of decisions or acts of complained persons do not fall within labor legislation's regulation scope and are not directly related to legitimate rights and interests of complainants.

2. Complainants do not have full civil act capacity while having no lawful representatives.

3. Representatives of complainants are unlawful.

4. The statute of limitations for complaining or time limit for further lodging complaints has expired.

5. Final complaint-settling decisions have been issued.

6. Complaints have been or are accepted by people's courts for settlement, or there have existed legally effective court judgments or decisions.

Article 12.- Complaining procedures

1. Complainants must make complaints clearly inscribed with day, month and year of complaining, their full names and addresses, reasons for complaining, complaining contents; names and addresses of complained labor-employing organizations and/or individuals; and their requests. Complaints must be signed by complainants and sent to agencies, organizations or individuals with settling competence.

2. In cases where complainants verbally express their complaints, responsible persons shall have to guide them in writing down their complaints or record the complaining contents according to the provisions of Clause 1 of this Article, with signatures of complainants.

3. In cases where complainants make their complaints through their representatives, such representatives must have papers evidencing their lawful proxy and the complaining must strictly comply with the procedures prescribed in Clauses 1 and 2 of this Article.

Article 13.- Acceptance of complaints for settlement

1. Persons competent to settle complaints, when receiving written complaints falling under their settling competence, must accept them for settlement. If complaints do not fall under their settling competence, they shall have to notify such and guide the complainants to file their complaints to persons with settling competence, and concurrently enclose papers and documents (if any) relevant to the complaining contents. The notification shall be made only once for a complaint case.

2. For complaints-cum-denunciations, competent persons shall settle the complaining contents, while the denouncing contents shall be forwarded to persons competent to settle denunciations according to the provisions of Article 26 of this Decree.

3. When conducting inspection, if laborers or labor collectives make complaints about labor decisions or labor acts, labor inspectors shall settle them as follows:

a/ If such complaints have been settled for the first time by labor users, they shall guide laborers or labor collectives to further lodge their complaints to provincial/municipal Services' chief inspectors;

b/ If such complaints are first-time ones, they shall receive and accept them for settlement.

Article 24.- Time limit and order for settling first-time complaints

1. When laborers or labor collectives make first-time complaints about labor users' labor decisions or labor acts, such labor users or labor inspectors (hereinafter referred to as first-time complaint settlers for short), while conducting inspection, shall have to accept and settle them according to the following order:

a/ Within 10 days after receiving complaints, first-time complaint settlers shall have to accept them for settlement and notify such in writing to complainants;

b/ The time limit for settling complaints shall not exceed 30 days after accepting them for settlement. For complicated cases and matters, the settling time limit may be prolonged but must not exceed 45 days after they are accepted for settlement;

c/ First-time complaint settlers must meet and converse personally with complainants; for complaints of labor collectives, the participation of representatives of grassroots trade union organizations is required. For places where trade union organizations are yet available, the participation of representatives of laborers (higher-level trade union organizations), joined by labor conciliators or other mass organizations, is required. The settlement of complaints by first-time complaint settlers must be effected by complaint-settling decisions.

2. A first-time complaint-settling decision must have the following contents:

a/ Day, month, year of decision issuance;

b/ Names and addresses of laborer(s) and labor user(s);

c/ The conclusion that complaining contents are right, partially right or totally wrong;

d/ Legal bases for settling the complaint;

e/ Keeping intact, amendment, cancellation of part or whole of the complained decision, or termination of complained act; or solution of specific problems in complaining contents;

f/ Compensation for damage sufferer (if any);

g/ Right to further lodge complaints of complainant or complained person.

Complaint-settling decisions of first-time complaint settlers must be sent to complainants and complained persons (if first-time complaint settlers are labor inspectors conducting inspection), provincial/municipal Services' chief inspectors, labor federations of provinces or centrally-run cities, and concerned units, organizations and individuals.

Article 15.- Time limit and order for settling subsequent complaints

1. Within 30 days after the time limit for settling first-time complaints expires, if such complaints are not settled, complainants may lodge their complaints to provincial/municipal Services' chief inspectors.

2. Within 30 days after receiving first-time complaint-settling decisions, if complainants disagree with such decisions, they may further lodge their complaints to provincial/municipal Services' chief inspectors.

3. Within 10 days after receiving complaints about first-time complaint-settling decisions, subsequent complaint settlers shall have to accept them and notify such in writing to complainants.

4. Time limit for subsequent complaint settlement shall not exceed 45 days after they are accepted. For complicated cases or matters, such time limit shall not exceed 60 days.

5. Within 30 days after receiving complaint-settling decisions of provincial/municipal Services' chief inspectors, if complainants or complained persons disagree with such decisions, they may further lodge their complaints to the Ministry's chief inspector.

Article 16.- Requests for suspension of labor users' decisions or acts

In the course of settling complaints, if deeming that complained decisions or acts of labor users may cause harm to life or health of laborers or severely harm the State's interests, provincial/municipal Services' chief inspectors may request the labor users to suspend the implementation of such decisions or acts until competent authorities issue decisions.

Article 17.- Rights of provincial/municipal Services' chief inspectors when settling complaints

1. In the course of settling complaints, provincial/municipal Services' chief inspectors have the rights:

a/ To meet and converse personally with complainants and complained persons in order to clarify the complaining contents, the requests of complainants and the settling directions;

b/ To request complainants to supply information, documents and evidences on complaining contents;

c/ To request complained persons to explain in writing the complained contents;

d/ To summon complainants and complained persons for direct conversations;

e/ To make on-spot verification;

f/ To solicit expertise and apply other measures provided for by law.

2. Individuals, agencies and organizations, when receiving requests of provincial/municipal Services' chief inspectors defined in Clause 1 of this Article, shall have to act upon such requests.

Article 18.- Subsequent complaint-settling decisions

1. Subsequent complaint-settling decisions must be made in writing and have the following contents:

a/ Day, month, year of decision issuance;

b/ Names and addresses of complainant and complained person;

c/ Complaining contents;

d/ Result of clarification and verification;

e/ Legal bases for settling complaints;

f/ Conclusion on complaining contents and settlement of preceding complaint;

g/ Keeping intact, amendment, cancellation or request for amendment or cancellation of part or whole of the complained decision, termination of complained act; solution of specific matters in the complaining contents;

h/ Damage compensation (if any);

i/ Right to further lodge complaints of complainants, complained persons.

2. Complaint-settling decisions of provincial/municipal Services' chief inspectors must be sent to complainants and complained persons, labor federations of the provinces or centrally-run cities, the chief inspector of the Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs, concerned units, organizations and individuals.

Article 19.- Complaint settlement dossiers

1. The complaint settlement must be recorded in dossiers. A complaint settlement dossier comprises:

a/ The written complaint or record of complaining opinions;

b/ Written records of verification, conclusion, expertise results;

c/ Other relevant documents;

d/ Complaint-settling decision.

2. Complaint settlement dossiers must be ordinally numbered on all pages of their documents and archived according to law provisions. In cases where complainants further lodge their complaints, such dossiers must be transferred to agencies competent to further settle the complaints when so requested.

Section 4. REVISION OF LAW-VIOLATING

FINAL COMPLAINT-SETTLING DECISIONS

Article 20.- Grounds for revising final complaint-settling decisions

1. When having one of the following grounds, persons defined in Article 21 of this Decree shall have competence to revise final complaint-settling decisions:

a/ New circumstances which can substantially change the contents of final complaint-settling decisions are discovered;

b/ Contents of final complaint-settling decisions are discordant with objective circumstances of complaining cases;

c/ There are serious violations of the prescribed order and procedures for verifying, concluding on and issuing final complaint-settling decisions, thus causing harm to the State's interests, legitimate rights and interests of parties involved in labor relations;

d/ Serious mistakes are made in the application of laws.

2. The statute of limitations for revising final complaint-settling decisions shall be 24 months after such decisions take legal effect.

Article 21.- Persons competent to revise final complaint-settling decisions

1. The Ministry's chief inspector, when discovering one of the grounds prescribed in Article 20 of this Decree, shall have to revise the final complaint-settling decisions.

2. The Minister of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs, when discovering one of the grounds prescribed in Article 20 of this Decree, shall request the Ministry's chief inspector to revise the final complaint-settling decisions.

3. When revising the final complaint-settling decisions, competent persons shall keep intact, amend or cancel such settling decisions.

Section 5. EXECUTION OF LEGALLY EFFECTIVE

COMPLAINT-SETTLING DECISIONS

Article 22.- Execution of legally effective complaint-settling decisions

1. When complaint-settling decisions take legal effect, labor users, laborers, labor collectives, concerned agencies, organizations or individuals shall have to strictly abide by them.

2. In cases where complaints are right, complained persons shall have to organize the execution of complaint-settling decisions, terminate complained acts; amend or cancel complained decisions, make public apologies, restore honor and all material benefits of laborers.

3. In cases where complaints are wrong, complaint settlers shall explain to and request the complainants to abide by complaint-settling decisions. In case of necessity, complaint settlers may request labor inspectors to apply measures according to their competence to secure the strict execution of legally effective complaint-settling decisions.

Article 23.- Inspection of execution of complaint-settling decisions

Provincial/municipal Services' chief inspectors and the Ministry's chief inspector shall have to inspect the execution of legally effective complaint-settling decisions.

Chapter III

SETTLEMENT OF DENUNCIATIONS

Section 1. RIGHTS AND OBLIGATIONS OF DENOUNCERS

AND DENOUNCED PERSONS

Article 24.- Rights and obligations of denouncers

1. Denouncers have the following rights:

a/ To send written denunciations to or make oral denunciations with provincial/municipal Services' chief inspectors or labor inspectors while they are conducting inspection of labor users' acts of violating labor legislation.

b/ To lodge denunciations to the Ministry's chief inspector if disagreeing with settling conclusions of labor inspectors or provincial/municipal Services' chief inspectors;

c/ To request that their full names, addresses and autographs are kept secret;

d/ To request to be informed of denunciation settlement results;

e/ To request protection by competent agencies when being intimidated, ill-treated or revenged.

2. Denouncers have the following obligations:

a/ To clearly state their full names and addresses or full names and addresses of representatives of labor collectives;

b/ To honestly present and supply documents and evidences related to denouncing contents;

c/ To be held responsible before law for untruthful denunciations.

Article 25.- Rights and obligations of denounced persons

1. Denounced persons have the following rights:

a/ To be informed of denounced contents;

b/ To show evidences to prove that denounced contents are untruthful;

c/ To have their legitimate rights and interests, which have been infringed upon, or their honor, restored, to get compensations for damage caused by wrong denunciations according to law provisions;

d/ To request competent agencies to handle wrong denouncers.

2. Denounced persons have the following obligations:

a/ To explain about denounced contents; to supply information, documents and/or evidences related to denounced contents when so requested by competent agencies;

b/ To strictly abide by settling decisions of competent agencies;

c/ To pay damages, and remedy consequences caused by their acts of violating labor legislation.

Section 2. COMPETENCE TO SETTLE DENUNCIATIONS

Article 26.- Competence to settle denunciations

1. Provincial/municipal Services' chief inspectors, labor inspectors, while conducting inspection, are competent to settle denunciations.

2. The Ministry's chief inspector is competent to make conclusions or final settlement of denunciation-settling conclusions of provincial/municipal Services' chief inspectors or labor inspectors while conducting inspection.

Section 3. PROCEDURES FOR SETTLING DENUNCIATIONS

Article 27.- Denouncing procedures

Denouncers shall have to send their written denunciations to provincial/municipal Services' chief inspectors or labor inspectors while they are conducting inspections at enterprises. Such written denunciations must clearly state full names and addresses of denouncers or representatives of denouncing labor collectives; and denouncing contents. In cases where denouncers come in person to orally present their denunciations, labor inspectors or officials of provincial/municipal Services of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs shall have to record in writing the denouncing contents, full names and addresses of the denouncers and ask the denouncers to give their signatures, then report them to provincial/municipal Services' chief inspectors for consideration and settlement.

Article 28.- Handling of written denunciations

1. State agencies which receive written denunciations shall have to sort and handle them as follows:

a/ If the denunciations fall under their settling competence, they shall have to accept them for settlement according to the order and procedures prescribed in this Decree;

b/ If the denunciations do not fall under their settling competence, they shall, within 10 days after receiving them, have to forward the written denunciations or written records of verbal denunciations and relevant documents and evidences (if any) to chief inspectors of Services of provinces or centrally-run cities where the denounced labor users are headquartered;

c/ If the denunciations are against acts which show signs of crimes, they shall transfer them to investigating agencies or procuracies for handling according to law provisions.

2. In cases where labor users' denounced decisions or acts may cause serious harms to the State's interests, life or health of laborers, the denunciation-receiving agencies shall have to promptly notify such to chief inspectors of Services of provinces or centrally-run cities where the denounced labor users' decisions or acts are issued or taken for application of preventive measures.

3. In cases where provincial/municipal Services' chief inspectors or labor inspectors, while conducting inspection, are informed that denouncers are intimidated, oppressed or revenged, they shall have to direct or coordinate with relevant functional agencies in verifying the cases, taking measures to protect such denouncers, preventing and requesting competent authorities to handle persons who commit acts of intimidating, oppressing or revenging denouncers.

Article 29.- Time limit for settling denunciations

The time limit for settling labor-related denunciations shall not exceed 60 days after such denunciations are accepted for settlement. For complicated cases or matters, the settling time limit may be prolonged but must not exceed 90 days after they are accepted for settlement.

Article 30.- Reception of denouncing information, documents

When personally receiving information and/or documents supplied by denouncers, denounced persons, concerned agencies, organizations and/or individuals, denunciation settlers shall have to issue receipts with signatures of receivers and suppliers.

Article 31.- Guarantee of rights of denounced persons

In the course of settling denunciations, persons tasked to verify the cases shall have to create conditions for denounced persons to explain or show evidences to prove that the denounced contents are right or wrong.

Article 32.- Gathering of evidences

Documents and evidences gathered in the course of verifying and settling labor-related denunciations must be recorded in writing and kept in denunciation-settling dossiers. After the verification is completed, persons assigned with verifying tasks must make written conclusions on the denouncing contents.

Article 33.- Handling of denouncing contents

Basing themselves on results of verification of, and conclusion on, denouncing contents, provincial/municipal Services' chief inspectors or labor inspectors shall handle them as follows:

1. In cases where denounced persons have not violated labor legislation, they must make clear conclusions thereon and notify such in writing to denouncers, denounced persons and concerned agencies, organizations and individuals.

2. In cases where denounced persons have violated labor legislation, they shall request in writing the denounced persons to strictly comply with provisions of labor legislation and apply, depending on the nature and seriousness of violations, administrative sanctioning forms or propose competent State agencies to handle them according to law provisions.

3. In cases where acts of denounced persons show signs of crimes, they shall transfer dossiers to investigating agencies or people's procuracies for handling according to law provisions.

4. Denunciation-settling conclusions must be expressed in writing and sent to denouncers, denounced persons, concerned agencies, organizations and individuals.

Article 34.- Keeping secret and securing safety for denouncers

Agencies, organizations and individuals that receive or settle denunciations must keep secret denouncers, must not disclose their full names, addresses and/or autographs as well as other information that can cause harms to them.

Article 35.- Denunciation-settling dossiers

The denunciation settlement must be recorded into dossiers, each comprising:

a/ Written denunciation or written record of verbal denunciations;

b/ Written record of verification, results of expertise, documents and evidences gathered in the course of settlement;

c/ Written explanation of denounced person;

d/ Conclusions on denouncing contents; written proposal on handling measures;

e/ Relevant documents;

f/ Settling decision.

Chapter IV

MANAGEMENT OF COMPLAINT AND DENUNCIATION SETTLEMENT

Article 36.- Contents of management of complaint and denunciation settlement

a/ Promulgating legal documents on settlement of complaints and denunciations;

b/ Propagating, guiding and organizing the implementation of law provisions on complaints and denunciations;

c/ Inspecting and examining the observance of law provisions on complaints and denunciations;

d/ Training and fostering officials and public employees engaged in the settlement of complaints and denunciations;

e/ Summing up the situation of complaints, denunciations and the settlement thereof;

f/ Reviewing experiences from the work of settling complaints and denunciations.

Article 37.- Responsibility of the Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs

The Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs is answerable to the Government for performing the State management over the settlement of labor-related complaints and denunciations within the ambit of the Government's competence.

Chapter V

COMMENDATION AND HANDLING OF VIOLATIONS

Article 38.- Commendation

Agencies, organizations and individuals that record achievements in settling complaints and denunciations, and denouncers who record merits in preventing harms from being caused to the State, protecting legitimate rights and interests of laborers, shall be commended and/or rewarded according to law provisions.

Article 39.- Handling of violations

Persons who commit one of the following acts shall, depending on the nature and seriousness of their violations, be disciplined, administratively sanctioned or examined for penal liability. If causing damage, they must pay compensations therefor according to law provisions:

1. Provoking, forcing, enticing or buying off other persons to make untruthful complaints or denunciations.

2. Taking advantage of complaints or denunciations to distort, slander or cause public disorder or harms to interests of agencies, organizations or individuals.

3. Making untruthful denunciations.

4. Intimidating, revenging or offending complainants, denouncers or persons responsible for settling complaints or denunciations.

5. Failing to abide by complaint-settling decisions, denunciation-settling decisions.

6. Violating other law provisions on labor-related complaints and denunciations.

Article 40.- Handling of violations committed by persons responsible for settling complaints and denunciations

Persons responsible for settling complaints and denunciations, who commit one of the following acts, shall, depending on the nature and seriousness of their violations, be disciplined or examined for penal liability. If causing damage, they must pay compensations therefor according to law provisions:

1. Showing irresponsibility in the settlement of complaints or denunciations.

2. Causing troubles, harassment for obstructing the exercise of the right to make complaints and denunciations.

3. Intentionally delaying the settlement of complaints or denunciations.

4. Falsifying dossiers of cases in the course of settling complaints or denunciations.

5. Issuing unlawful complaint-settling decisions or denunciation-settling decisions.

6. Failing to promptly apply necessary measures to terminate acts of law violation.

7. Intimidating, oppressing or revenging complainants or denouncers; covering up complained or denounced persons.

8. Violating other law provisions on complaints and denunciations.

Chapter VI

IMPLEMENTATION PROVISIONS

Article 41.- Implementation effect

1. This Decree takes effect 15 days after its publication in the Official Gazette. All previous stipulations which are contrary to this Decree are hereby annulled.

2. Complaints and denunciations already accepted or being considered and settled before the effective date of this Decree shall continue being settled according to the provisions of this Decree.

Article 42.- Implementation responsibilities

The Minister of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs shall have to guide the implementation of this Decree.

The ministers, the heads of the ministerial-level agencies, the heads of the Government-attached agencies, the presidents of the People's Committees of the provinces or centrally-run cities, laborers, labor collectives and labor users shall have to implement this Decree.

On behalf of the Government./.